Scoundrel
by Lorelei547
Summary: Everyone thought the little farm at the edge of town was a lost hope, an impossible task. That is everyone but two very different people. Who each wanted it for two very different uses that clashed beside one another. A Forget-Me-Not Valley One-Shot.


"Get in- Oof."

The brown haired farmer fell to the ground with a loud thud her arms sinking into thick mud, rain pouring down on her like an ocean had been placed above her. She let out a low growl as she slowly picked herself to her knees, overalls now a thick brown color. The stupid chicken wasn't supposed to run out of its coop. She had only been trying to feed it.

As she looked after it staggering and confused in the rain as it ran around the farm she couldn't help but feel a familiar feeling of dread wash over her. It was just another of the many, many things that had gone wrong on this farm she was starting.

"_A farmer?!" Her mother had shrieked just months ago. "You dropped out of law school for what!?"_

"_Mom," she had tried to argue but there had been no understanding met. Her mother was livid._

"_Is this about the money Jill? I'll pay for all your schooling even if I have to work five jobs!"_

Had she been stupid to deny her mother's request? Perhaps it was a crazy idea, farming. A girl like her on her own on this little island in the middle of nowhere…

It had seemed so… inviting at the time. She wasn't sure of the right word to describe it. The little town nestled in the hills of Forget-Me-Not Valley, the townsfolk, the serenity…

Then this… a beat up farm way past its prime, weed infested and practically falling apart... How could such a cute little town give birth to _this_? She tried so many times to envision it in years previous, teaming with animals and fresh crops. But the ever pressing image of the dull ground around her remained branded inside her head.

Yet she couldn't give up. She was at wits end with crops that wouldn't grow; weeds that would comeback as fast as you cut them down and animal sheds that creaked and rattled with each step. She'd done so much yet it seemed so little.

For example the little cottage she called home had been hardly livable when she'd arrived. The windows were broken and bugs were everywhere. It had taken all the remaining school money she had left after buying the plot of land, but it was refurbished. New windows, support beams, plumbing, electricity… everything. Yet on the inside it was as bland and boring as it was the day she'd first stepped inside. Sure she no longer feared it would collapse over her head, but she hardly had a bed… That wasn't success to her.

She'd fixed up the chicken coop as well, and the loan she took out to do it was well worth it as the profit she got from the eggs soon paid it off… In truth the farm was in better condition than it had been in years, surpassing any hopes the villagers had ever had upon seeing the little city girl.

There had been bets among the town's residents… two weeks tops until she ran home to her mother. And even when she'd outlived their standards it had never been anyone's guess she'd make it on the farm. Even Takura had given up on the spoiled ground and decaying house.

This one little girl was turning this whole farm around before the town's eyes and yet to her it was nothing but below average, inadequate.

Pushing herself up from the ground she splashed after the chicken until she finally was able to herd it into the chirping warm coop the door slamming behind the chicken's tail feathers.

Little did she know just yards away into the forest lurked an on-looker. His slender face displayed no emotion as he leaned against the birch, his ice blue eyes following her with every step she took. It was clear from the relaxed demeanor he put forth this was not the first time he'd looked on at the working girl. And he did not intend to be seen.

He was a loner in the town, unwanted to them but what did he care he was unwanted to many people. People were only fun so long until they got burdensome. But as to this girl, Jill –he'd stolen a look at some files curious of her name- she was different. For one thing she condemned his home, for this he disliked her greatly. Or so he had…

Though not by papers or anything official he did not own this farm, but he had lived it as his own. Unseen by the town he took cover in the little house from time to time. Although not perfect to many people it had provided shelter from the dogs that roamed at night and the wind. This proved especially helpful when Ruby –the local Inn owner- got suspicious of his presence in the unrented room upstairs. He liked this option this escape goat of a shelter, and the fact that someone else was sporting it well, it just wouldn't do.

For some, being homeless would be a sign of failure but to him his only failure had been his father. Living like this it was an adventure, he told himself. The constant thrill of almost getting caught when he snatched a few bucks or a meal, there were no rules for him except one; do not get caught.

At first he hadn't liked that the little brunette had stolen away his farm, livid actually. He'd smashed the remaining windows in the house, taken out a beam in the empty animal shed so it collapsed. Heck he even smashed a few crops and eggs. He hadn't felt a twig of guilt at the time. This wasn't the life for a city girl like her, and he was just helping her along in knowing that.

But she did something he hadn't expected. She patched the windows. She worked side by side with the carpenter and rebuilt the house. The destroyed egg shells and plants were chucked to the side; new seeds re-planted and the collapsed animal shed cleared away yet to be rebuilt. She wasn't giving up.

Sure he thought as he watched her, replacing the windows didn't make them unbreakable. But somehow the lingering thief couldn't bring himself to do it. He robbed every night for his meals, for toiletries, for a place to stay. How could one mere little thing as this tug on his conscious? One little girl who's beauty shown so much brighter than anything he'd seen before, in a much different way than anything before.

He watched as the farmer splashed inside her new home door clicking behind her. Perhaps it was wrong to judge people on a whole, for one city people…

* * *

**So thats my little rendition of the Jill x Skye coupling. Why I think that such a character as Skye would take an interest in a farmer girl in a way different than his usual ways.  
I haven't really followed the couple or much of the Forget-Me-Not Valley based fanfictions at all so I understand my version take on Skye could be a little different. If so I hope it's an enjoyable different for you readers.  
I did write this in the midst of some sever writers block and it wasn't supposed to be anything more than this one-shot. But after writing it the pairing really interests me, so although this stands as a one-shot I am debating a longer fic of possibly a little shy of ten chapters. Nothing official just a little dabbling.**

**I also want to say a big thanks to Awesome Rapidash for beta reading and helping fix all of my mistakes! I'm so glad your helping out. Thank you all for reading, and as always if you have the time reviews are always welcome. Perhaps tell me if you'd be interested in a longer Jill x Skye story or not. Thanks again everyone! (:**


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